Night howlers
Night Howlers, also known as Midnicampum Holicithias,Zootopia: The Essential Guide, page 32. are a species of flora that have severe psychotropic effects on mammals. They were used during the anti-predator conspiracy in a weaponized form to brew fear among the prey population. They are classified as a Class C Botanical in Zootopia, though they don't seem to be very well known in the city. History When Judy's Uncle Terry was young, he ate a night howler whole and succumbed to its effects, attacking his sister Bonnie and mauling her. He was eventually able to make a full recovery and went on to become a cabbage farmer in East Bunnyburrow, but the incident led the Hopps family to become wary of the flowers. Prior to Judy's acceptance into the Zootopia Police Department's first precinct, Dawn Bellwether devised a plan to strike back for being underestimated and unappreciated by turning the massive prey population of Zootopia against the predators. She set out to accomplish this task with the aid of three rams, Doug, Jesse, and Woolter. A laboratory was set up within an old train car located at an abandoned subway station to gather night howlers and extract their mind-altering chemicals to convert into a concentrated form, which was then placed within small glass paintball-like pellets, and loaded into an air powered sniper gun. Doug used this gun to shoot fourteen predatory mammals and cause them to revert to feral states, which led to them being secretly quarantined by Mayor Leodore Lionheart at the Cliffside Asylum. When the mayor's cover-up was exposed, the prey population of Zootopia underwent a panic, particularly after Officer Judy Hopps suggested that the change was genetic. Feeling guilty over her contribution to the panic, Hopps resigned from the ZPD and returned to Bunnyburrow. However, the anecdote about her uncle's consumption of a night howler led Judy to realize that even prey animals could become savage. Judy, with with help of Nick Wilde, was able to track down Duke Weaselton, a thief she had previously arrested for stealing night howlers bulbs. The weasel disclosed the location of the Doug's laboratory, and Judy and Nick were able to gather evidence that the predators were not becoming savage of their own volition. However, Doug's fellow rams attempted to prevent the duo from exposing the conspiracy. During the ensuing struggle, Bellwether revealed her role in the plot and attempted to cover up her actions by shooting Nick with the night howler gun, though Judy and her companion had managed to swap out the ammunition with a similar-looking substitute; a blueberry. After the role of night howlers in the conspiracy was revealed, it became possible for the predators affected to recover. Description Night howlers are small-medium flowers with six purple petals. They contain a toxin capable of inflicting highly potent psychological effects on mammals that cause them to become extremely aggressive and violent. A further side effect is the loss of sentience, as affected animals are limited to growls and snarls, and will walk and run on all fours all the time. Overall, the flowers cause any mammal to revert to a wild, aggressive, violent state that is described as "Savage". However, the effects of the flowers only occur if they are ingested or if the chemicals enter an animal's body via injection. The effects of the flower are also not permanent, as Uncle Terry was eventually able to recover from his savage condition. However, in its weaponized form, the effects apparently last in defiantly unless the victim is cured by an antidote, as the predators affected by Bellwether's plot remained trapped in their feral state for months until they were rehabilitated by an antivenom. References Category:Objects